Summer is the perfect time to kick back with a stack of great books. We've put together the ultimate guide to finding the perfect books for those sunny days and balmy nights.
Dive into our list of essential summer reads across different genres for every mood and moment.
Idea of You
by Robinne Lee
Now an original movie on Prime Video starring Anne Hathaway and Nicholas Galitzine!
When Solène Marchand, the thirty-nine-year-old owner of a prestigious art gallery in Los Angeles, takes her daughter, Isabelle, to meet her favorite boy band, she does so reluctantly and at her ex-husband’s request. The last thing she expects is to make a connection with one of the members of the world-famous August Moon. But Hayes Campbell is clever, winning, confident, and posh, and the attraction is immediate. That he is all of twenty years old further complicates things.
Everything and Nothing at Once
by Joél Leon
Growing up in the Bronx, Joél Leon was taught that being soft, being vulnerable, could end your life. Shaped by a singular view of Black masculinity espoused by the media, family and friends, and society, he learned instead to care about the gold around his neck and the number of bills in his wallet. He absorbed the “facts” that white was always right and that Black men were either threatening or great for comic relief but never worthy of the opening credits. It wasn’t until years later that Joél understood he didn’t have to be defined by these and other stereotypes.
The Three-Body Problem
by Cixin Liu, translated by Ken Liu
The inspiration for the Netflix series 3 Body Problem!
Set against the backdrop of China's Cultural Revolution, a secret military project sends signals into space to establish contact with aliens. An alien civilization on the brink of destruction captures the signal and plans to invade Earth. Meanwhile, on Earth, different camps start forming, planning to either welcome the superior beings and help them take over a world seen as corrupt, or to fight against the invasion. The result is a science fiction masterpiece of enormous scope and vision.
Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies
by Catherine Mack
A USA Today Bestseller
Ten days, eight suspects, six cities, five authors, three bodies . . . one trip to die for. All that bestselling author Eleanor Dash wants is to get through her book tour in Italy and kill off her main character, Connor Smith, in the next in her Vacation Mysteries series—is that too much to ask?
Very Bad Company
by Emma Rosenblum
Every year, executives at the trendy tech startup Aurora gather the company’s top employees for an exclusive retreat in Miami, and this year Caitlin Levy—Aurora’s newest hire—is joining the team as head of events. The benefits are outstanding: a seven-figure salary, stock shares, a discretionary bonus, limitless vacation days—what could possibly go wrong?
Parade
by Rachel Cusk
From Rachel Cusk, author of the Outline trilogy, comes this startling, exhilarating novel that once again expands the notion of what fiction can be and do.
Parade is a novel that demolishes the conventions of storytelling. It surges past the limits of identity, character, and plot to tell the story of G, an artist whose life contains many lives. Rachel Cusk is a writer and visionary like no other, who turns language upside down to show us our world as it really is.
Granite Harbor
by Peter Nichols
A small town in coastal Maine is shaken to its core by a serial killer in this crime novel from Peter Nichols, bestselling author of The Rocks.
At once a page-turning thriller and a captivating portrait of the social fabric of a small town, Granite Harbor evokes the atmosphere of HBO’s Mare of Easttown with a villain reminiscent of Thomas Harris’s Silence of the Lambs.
Children of Anguish and Anarchy
Legacy of Orisha (Volume 3)
by Tomi Adeyemi
Featuring gorgeous designed edges, dazzling metallic foil designs on the jacket and case, and an exclusive endpaper map that reveals new unexplored territories, Tomi Adeyemi’s #1 New York Times-bestselling Legacy of Orïsha series comes to an earth-shaking conclusion.
Humor Me
by Cat Shook
For fans of Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld, a hilarious, heartfelt novel about the healing power of female friendship, unexpected love, and stand-up comedy
Presley Fry is not amused. She’s been an assistant at the Late Night Show for way too long, she’s adopted a “business casual” approach to dating to save herself from the embarrassment of seeking genuine connection, and she’s content to let her gregarious roommate, Isabelle, orchestrate her entire social life. Not completely disillusioned, Presley is enamored with the world of stand-up comedy. The joy she finds in discovering up-and-coming comedians is enough for now.
Curvy Girl Summer
by Danielle Allen
Bridget Jones’s Diary meets Survival of the Thickest in Danielle Allen’s CURVY GIRL SUMMER, a smoking-hot, hilarious novel about the perils of online dating.
“There’s got to be an easier way than dating. I want the shortcut. I just want to find my person and start our lives together.”
After a one-night stand with her clingy ex, Aaliyah James has an epiphany: this ain’t it. She knows what she wants, and she’s ready to move past casual hookups, flings, and situationships.